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I love finding groups with a cool sound that's just as oddball as I am, and m-flo definitely fits that bill. A Japanese hip-hop group with a lyricist that's actually a Christian, and even *talks* about his faith? Win.

Have a taste of the cool jazz sounds of m-flo featuring double and toku:

A little bit from Microphone Banditz, Verbal's spin-off group off his label, Espionage Records.

Just noticed that this officially makes Japan just like America, hip-hop-wise, with them having their own "rapper who gets famous then tries to promote a group of rappers with members who may or may not have the skills of the guy hyping them". (Hint: They generally don't.) This puts Verbal in the company of Eminem and Ludacris, so depending on who you talk to, he's either in really good company, or in the company of pop rappers who know when to milk their popularity to help their boys out.

Least he teamed up with equally (kinda) popular J-R&B singer Emi Hinouchi to bring some good vocals.

I'm making no secret of this. Yes, I love a J-Pop girl band. Specifically, dream.

Sure, make jokes about how I have bad taste. I don't care, dream does harmonization like nobody's business, and they sound absolutely amazing. I haven't heard much from "New dream", but I know the original group was great. Here is another case of an anime having awesome opening and endings but itself being...well, crap.

Inuyasha was one of the more annoying things to pop up during the anime boom. Kind of the anime version of Twilight--having sparked a possibly neverending source of annoying tween fangirls (and boys! ...Somehow...) who have an undying devotion to a series full of prettyboy putzes. (Miroku was cool though. And Sango was hot. If they were in some other series, I wouldn't mind.)

Anyway, dream was definitely one of the cooler endings Inuyasha had, along with the DAI EDs, so I had to put this one up. Enjoy. (No comment on the dancing, aside from...the…

Believe it or not, I had no idea this song existed. While I was looking for the Song of the Day, I ran across this gem in the Related Videos box. I knew C-Kay was a Janet fan, but I'd had no idea she did a tribute singing one of MJ's classics, Human Nature.

If you trust YT, someone in the comments says the part before her singing is talking about the influence MJ and Janet were/are on her, and how much of a shock it was that MJ died and how sad the whole thing was. Its okay to sing along. You know you want to. This song was awesome. If they say, why, why...tell 'em that its human nature...

So its Sunday night and we've just come through Comic-Con. There's lot of other panels that will be covered in a flood of info over the next two or three days, but near as I can tell, ALL the panels from the Big Two have been covered, so we're going to get into that.

This is going to be a slightly different format than last year's Comic-Con "report". Last year I basically broke it down to the things that had come out I was most excited about. Considering I read comics for superheroes and only half were superhero projects, I was pretty psyched about the whole CC last year, for them to think up five full projects I had some interest in.

This year kinda went down pretty weird though. Maybe I'm wrong, but it kinda felt like they didn't want to announce anything huge for some reason. I feel like that, but why? ...I *know* they couldn't have thought their fans were all at the Twilight Panel.

Gotta love these new school hymns, as I call them. This us another song I used to hear in church as a kid, and I love it almost as much as I Will Sing Hallelujah. Especially given how infectious the song and its beat is.

This sounds like a new song, but its actually over a decade or so old. I remember the choir singing this song when I was close to seven or eight years old, and the lyrics being so catchy that I'd find myself singing them even after I'd left church. Not the worst thing that could've happened back then, really.

Roughly translated as Would You Marry Me?, just watching the video you can tell the band had likely wayyyy too much fun making it.

I discovered Do As Infinity thanks to Inuyasha's 2nd and 5th openings (Fukai Mori and Shinjitsu no Uta, respectively), along with a select few songs from their first album, Break of Dawn.. While the album this comes from, Gates of Heaven, is a bit of a letdown, there are still quite a few gems to be found.

Do As Infinity, even though they broke up a few years ago, is STILL my favorite band. (I guess I'll be kicking it in the corner with the X-Japan fans. ...What's that? They got together? Ain't this about a bitch?)

Oh well. Koiotome? One of the greatest songs they ever did, off possibly their best album--Deep Forest. Ryo definitely kicked ass with his guitar this entire song. I just really love the intensity of Koiotome, so when I listen to it it stays in my head and forces me to play the entire album over and over again, dragging me back into an nearly endless spiral of sweet, sweet J-Rock lovin'. Mmmm...have a taste. Try not to get addicted, k?

Look for TheLinkUp 7 next week, probably around...Wednesday, maybe? I know SDCC is over Sunday, but a LOT of panel information will pour in over the next few days *after* that. Right now the only thing people wanna hear about are the big movies, and the comic stuff--mostly from the Big Two. Which is cool, 'cause outside of superhero comics I really ain't reading comics anyway, I do manga. But there's still some relevant stuff that will hit up to two, or three days after SDCC.

Keshite! REWRITE-TO SHITE! KUDARANAI CHOU GENSOU...whoops. Sorry. Kinda got caught up with the chorus of this song. Check the link to see the full video, like always.

Little more J-Rock--track two off the legendary Sol-Fa album. Rewrite is an opening to one of...well, I wouldn't call it a favorite, but one of the best anime to make it over here to America in the past five or so years: Full Metal Alchemist. If you ever get the chance, watch it--you'll thank me. Anyway. Enjoy the vid.

I was told to never trust a big butt and a smile. If you don't recognize this song, turn in your Child of the 80's card. I'm not joking. We need it back. This is a straight up classic for anyone from that era, or even if you're from the 90's like me.

Haven't done any rock music in a bit. Can't let that slide or people might say I only like rap music again.

Art School is, near as I can tell, a good band on the verge of becoming amazing. Occasionally they pull out a song like this, and you're just absolutely amazed at the quality, but from what I've heard thus far, this is less rule, more exception. Shame, too, 'cause this song is sooo kick-arse.

Here's an old one, for me. I've been hearing this song for years, but not until early last year did I get it for my mom, who'd been asking me for a new Gospel CD for her for a while. Great message--one that, as a Christian, we must always keep in mind. Its not easy, but life should never deter you from your walk with Jesus. (...I feel bad. That seems so alien coming from me, but I've thought that way for years. One supposes I should do better putting that side of me out there, verbally as well as through my actions, which I hope show this side all the time.)

...This one I heard while I was sitting in my church some months back. We had a guest choir and this guy got up and sang the heck out of this song. I don't listen to the radio--gospel and nothing else--unless I'm riding with my mother, which I hadn't done in ages, so I'd never heard this song, but my mom knew every word and immediately after he finished singing she poked me to find this for her.

Of course, I did--took a bit (gospel songs are hard to find on the internet), but after hours of intensive search (re: Limewire), I found it, which is why I'm passing it on to you guys now.

...Speaking of Never Would Have...I Never Would Have Known that this had a music video! Well. Check it out, folks.

...Y'know, to take three weeks to finally put a Kirk Franklin song on here is kind of shocking, isn't it? I mean the guy's probably the most "mainstream" gospel artist there is, I just don't listen to him all that frequently. However, I love this song, so here we are.

...I'd never wear that shirt, but then again my life is a better billboard for Jesus than my chest.

Its Crystal Kay day today--my girl Kuri knows how to drop the club hits, right? This is during her younger years, probably released while she was 17-18 or so. 4Real is probably my favorite album of hers, aside from maybe Crystal Style. So many hits--like I Like It, Can't Be Stopped, Candy, etc...

This is one of those songs that, when I hear it, I can't help but want to dance. I don't, 'cause I can't, but I DO want to. :D Tell me if you feel the same way.

Here Crystal Kay gets down with a song that's almost entirely in English. Personally I think this could be a hit in America if marketed right--which would involve a new video, since this one's so traditionally Japanese.

Which, actually, is the good part about the video. No doubt an intentional incongruity since the song is so "modern".

Put up a song, now adding a video on here as well to match up. Ron Isley and R. Kelly's Contagious.

I confess, if I haven't told you before, I love videos that seem to tell stories. Especially when the song is telling a story as well so they match up? That's when the video enters the Hall of Fame for me.

Short of some MJ videos, there aren't many that tell a story better than Contagious does. Serious song, serious video, but there're STILL some moments you'll find yourself laughing. I remember when this video first dropped and everything--I was in seventh grade and EVERYBODY was singing. Myself included, which is rare because I don't follow "trends", but this was just an undeniably cold song. Especially since it was kind of the sequel to the Down Low (warning: that's another "movie" type song) video.

Doing this Ron Isley spotlight 'cause I heard that they threw my boy in jail for back taxes. That's a shame too, 'cau…

Little extra heat today. This is DJ Sage, back with some old-school flavor in ya ear. We're going way back (back into time!) with a little joint from the early 80's from soul supergroup The Isley Brothers.

Once again this is station WRAB--one of the only stations found in the multiverse run primarily by bunnies--giving you the hits from all eras and all genres. Keep it locked!

Wanted to do this for a while, but the video to this is, sadly, only upped by the label, so embedding is turned off. (WHY DO THAT?) Too bad too, 'cause I hear Claudia Jordan (of Foxxhole fame...or Celebrity Apprentice, I guess) is the leading lady in it and she's fine as a motherf...oh, sorry, got distracted. *coughs*

Joe's All The Things is an old, old song. And while I love it, I really had no intention of putting it up just yet, but then I heard dude had a new album coming out. Joe's nice with the R&B sounds, so I'm checking it out and in honor OF that, we get this song.

...I loved this song when I was a boy and heard it back in the day. Memorized it, even. (One day I'll let ya'll hear me.) At ONE point it was just a cute romantic song that I liked...but y'know...if it could help me snatch a female or two away from some of these dues that's out here slacking...*coughs* I'll just say it might have some OTHER uses and leave it at th…

Its been R&B week here at JiH, but that's okay. I love a good song now and again. Well, ok--I was in an R&B mood at FIRST, but today I went with R&B for a different reason.

Keri Hilson's Knock You Down is one of the catchiest songs out there right now, with lyrics I can actually co-sign on, plus one of those beats that when you hear it you just have to move: Perfect Combination. /fake Japanese accent

In fact, the song is so great, I intend to get Keri Hilson's In A Perfect World.. album some time today, which is my reasoning for putting this on here, hopefully convincing a few of my friends to go out and get her album as well.

...Man, I was unaware Keri Hilson was that fine. I would go at that with a Fishnet Condom...(but that video is not a good look...no one in her PR department told her it made her look like a bitch? SOMEBODY had to. Ah well. Just a video, and she's still a great singer and gorgeous to boot.)

...Didn't wanna say this in the last one, 'cause it was supposed to be somewhat solemn and whatnot, but...when was the last time you seen Timbaland in a song? I caught We Need A Resolution on XM Radio weeks ago and when I heard "Girl, holler...!" and I was like, "Oh shit! What happened to THAT nigga?" Last time *I* seen dude was with the Missy Elliot video, came out in like, eighth grade? (2002) ...The really weird one in the sewers and junk that always made me change the channel when the line about spitting came up and like, either Timbaland or Missy spits out and the other one caught it in their MOUTH. In the words of SO many people..."I ain't really need to see that."

ANYWAY! I could care less about R. Kelly, really.

The controversy, most of his music (You Remind Me Of My Jeep really ain't do it for me)...its whatever, really. But this song? THIS song? (This shit right here nigga? /Katt Williams)

Still seem to be in some kind of R&B mood, so I thought I'd go with a little old school.

Aaliyah was a rising star who was mega-popular when she died, and she was really *just* getting started when she we lost her. Lady was mad talented, and I loved so many of her songs--the music game is most definitely poorer without her. (Oh, and the lady was absolutely gorgeous. When she's in the sunglasses? These singers today should be so lucky to look that fine.)

True entertainer. Girl had it all--the looks, the voice, the dance moves...were she here today, she'd be a diva on the level of Beyonce.

I love this song. No, no really. I REALLY love this song. Back when I was a better person romantically and believed I'd fall in love and all that stuff, I always saw myself using (singing it, I mean) this one song to show how much I cared for the woman I loved.

...And now I'm kinda thinking of how I can use it to get a girl to let me go raw. Listen to it, you'll see what I mean:

They make you feel like you're in one of those old churches. Y'know, the really old ones you find out in the country. Old and hot--no AC so you can find fans ALL over the place, and they work REALLY well, but you better have some arm strength on you 'cause you're gonna be in there for about 2-3 hours. Listen--you'll get my meaning.

Alright, its Gospel Sunday! I really can't do too many of these because my gospel collection isn't quite as big, but you HEATHENS could use a little bit of Jesus in your lives, so two weeks in a row isn't a problem.

This song is more my mom's than mine (she's a *big* fan of it), but its still a great song with an insanely catchy hook. ...Y'know, sometimes I feel gospel has gotten a little too "club-ish", but THESE lyrics definitely came straight up out the church.

Little more Japanese stuff, this time on the J-Rock side of things. Asian Kung-Fu Generation is a great band, and Sol-fa, the album this song comes from, is one of, if not their BEST, album. Seriously, I love 9 tracks on the album, and the other 3 are good as well, I just don't like them quite as much.

I haven't been getting down too hard with the Japanese stuff this week. I listen to way too much of it to do that, so here's a song by another artist I absolutely love, Crystal Kay.

The video's kinda odd (in the future, we will all get down with robots!), but the song's a lot of fun--more from Japan's ever-growing J-Urban genre. (What can I say? They liked WildStyle.) I love the "anger" in her voice during the verses that's reflected through the music with the guitar and the switch-over to the sweetness during the chorus that's equally reflected when they drop the guitar and switch over to the lighter music.

I realize I get a little nostalgic on JiH, sometimes. And sometimes I go on these long rants about how much better things used to be.

...Not apologizing for that, so don't get excited. Its my site and I get to do that. However, I do want to say that's NOT what I'm doing this time, since I'm about to pose a rather important question:

Has gaming gotten lazy?

Understand that I'm an avid gamer, and I'm the first one to roll my eyes when gamers bitch and moan about a sequel to a good game coming out. Bitching that does not stop even though the sequel's good. As far as I'm concerned, a good game is a good game--be happy you got another one to feed your addiction.

That having been said...does anyone else feel like they could be doing more, with gaming? In this cynical culture, I guess asking that would net me (or whoever asked it) an instant yes or "of course", but hold on a sec.

To go a little deeper, are WE to blame for that? What I mean is, the …

I had to don my DJ hat to put this song on JiH. Lauryn Hill isn't all that prolific in the game, but she's definitely one of the best female lyricists out there and a true legend in the game. (But I ain't calling no one that's not in they fifties "Ms. Hill"--she'll have to settle for me using her full name instead of just her first.)

Anyway, Lauryn Hill brings the heat on this track, playing the role of both lyricist *and* vocalist, displaying how expertly she can pull off both roles. Like I said though--cutting down on these words and going straight for the video...so enjoy!

Man I'm with Kanye--"Lauryn Hill said her heart was in Zion/I wish her heart still was in rhyming", 'cause the game could really use more talented female lyricists.

Hey its DJ Sage back up in this joint with a new song from a classic artist! Anyone in their 20's has GOT to know who Heavy D is. Man has done so much in the hip-hop game, and last year he released a new album which was actually more along the line of reggae, and it was pretty cold. Here's one of the singles (I'm guessing, since it had a video), called No Matter What.

Enjoy the tunes, and once again its DJ Sage from WRAB--one of the few stations in the multiverse run primarily by bunnies--keeping your computer/cell phone bumping every day with only the best music from the best artists of every era and every genre! Keep it locked! (Or bookmarked!)

I can't front. I was mostly a fan of MJ's big big BIG hits. Thriller, Billy Jean, Rock with You, Remember the Time, Rock my World--that stuff (and Butterflies, which was just cold). But I got the Thriller album a couple weeks ago--not that 25th anniversary crap, the ORIGINAL. This song was cold.

But we're going to cut it down on the words and try to go straight to the video!

Its been a bit, but we're BACK with the hip-hop up in here! You gotta love it!

Okay, today we're going very, very indy with the hip-hop, with a song from a group called ShinSight Trio called Early Dayz Amazement. I kinda hate to give you guys this song since from the look of their Last.fm page(http://www.last.fm/music/ShinSight+Trio), its like their "Freebird", if you get the reference, but its too good to pass up.

Both the music and lyrics combine to give you this feeling of almost euphoric nostalgia (which is an oxymoron, for those who know the definition of nostalgia), and its so universal that even though the artist is rapping about some events specific to his life, it can still take you back to your youth and make you remember all the fun times you had then and make you realize how far you've come.

This song, and songs like this, are why when people tell me rap sucks I lose respect for them.

Bet you didn't see THIS coming, huh? Like a lot of people, I started liking Sara Bareilles (always forget that first e in her last name...) when she got Love Song onto that Rhapsody commercial--I decided I just had to have her album, so I went out and got it...absolutely fantastic stuff.

She's got this really powerful, almost soulful voice that comes across clearly in every song she sings. I don't know what she's going to do for her sophomore outing, but Little Voice was one of the best albums of 2007, and one of the best albums I have.

I hesitate to call it "pop music" because I don't really feel its that. I don't really want to call it Folk music because its not that either. I don't know how to classify it. But I love singers who know their way around a piano (like Sara or Alicia), and have strong, powerful voices (see previous parenthetical notation).

Anyway, let me shut up, 'cause this live is too good for you to waste your time focus…

You GOTTA love this song, if you're a REAL fan of the nineties like I am. Tony Toni Tone was one of the coldest R&B groups of the late eighties/early nineties. My personal favorite isn't really this song, but we'll get into that one later.

For now, just check THIS song out. And, if you got a girl, it just might be a good idea to remember this song come your anniversary. Just trying to help you out. ;)

I wanted to kick off the next set with a nice J-Rock song. So I went with UVERworld's Colors of the Heart--either the second, or the third(?) opening to Blood+.

...You ever, as an anime fan, watch an anime for some reason on Cable, and think its absolutely dreadful, but the music is great? That's Blood+. Aozora no Namida, Colors of the Heart, and a few other songs are all great stuff. But let's not just take my word for it:

I've loved this song for years. I love all the work they put into it--and the lyrics were always some of my favorite in all of my gospel songs. So naturally I was shocked to find out that the song is from the book of Psalms, chapter 3, almost verbatim. Not sure WHY, seeing as how David intended them to be songs from the beginning

I do wonder what David's version sounded like, though. (I'm a nerd. I truly do compare all things. :D)

Okay, I'm a little behind on these videos. So, here come a few. Need some more gospel music, so those first.

Total Praise is kinda... I liked it for quite a while, but then I heard it sung at my uncle's funeral. Which, if you've been paying attention, was a big deal for me. I confess, it took on a larger meaning to me, then, hearing it sung so well and so beautifully, and to learn it was his favorite song was...*sighs*

There's the list for this season. I'm a little late, since I usually have my picks out several weeks prior to any premieres, but as it is I believe a few of these are already out. Oh well. Click the image to see the series and their descriptions.

For those at home paying attention, Summer--much like Winter--are the "off" seasons. Most shows tend to run for 26 or 52 episodes, which means the major seasons are always Spring and Fall. Still, if you look carefully, you can find interesting stuff anyway--which is why I'm posting this!

Weiss Survive

Why I'm Interested: I'm a sucker for card games, I admit it. Weiss Survive is quite the interesting program, though I've yet to watch it. Its apparently a parody of card game anime (which can defnitely be warranted sometimes, even if I do like them), that's sixteen eps total, and only two and a half minutes long.

How Long Am I Keeping It Around: Eh...at 2 minutes, 30 seconds, for good. Basically I nor…

Gospel ain't so much with the videos, so we're doing two Song of the Days for today. (You can make an exception for the Lord! :D)

My mom introduced me to this song, and I really do find it one of the most beautiful gospel songs out there, though surprisingly by a guy who's not really a gospel singer--Lionel Richie from the Commodores. Ah well. Give a listen.

Its easy to forget, what with all the craziness on JiH, that amidst all these other parts of me I show, I'm also a Christian. Since I post music here now, I decided I couldn't just not post any gospel music.

That said, it won't be frequent. I don't love *all* gospel songs, so I'll be using these sparingly so as not to run out.

I've talked about Little Brother before, and I can really go on about them cats ad nauseum 'cause they really are where I feel like hip-hop needs to go. I've gone in depth on that too, but I don't need to here. Just, listen to the song.

Listen to it more than once. Both Big Pooh and Phonte are excellent MCs, but Phonte's verse in particular should speak to anyone, no matter the ethnicity, and the lines are so clever you can't catch it all in one go.

Okay, so I can't remember if I've said or not, but I'm actually quite the fan of Japanese hip-hop. The first time I heard it I admit I was tripping at the idea of hip-hop being done in the language I normally watch anime in, but I liked it. But I really didn't pay much attention to them until I copped their Astromantic album a full year later, like around the end of Fall Semester when I was a Junior in HS.

There was something about the album, what my life was like back then, and just the whole "mood" of the winter season that all just clicked for me, and I ended up playing that thing for a month and a half. School, in transit, home--wherever--I was rocking m-flo's third album...

But I never would've done it if THIS song hadn't hooked me.

This was during the time where I wasn't really hearing no music that ain't come off my mom's gospel station or from my CD Player/hard drive. I was so sick of all the new stuff, which was so boring, so…

That. The confidence, the arrogance--THAT resonates with me. I've been an arrogant guy for years now, so Kanye's "I'm better than you" lyrics always make me chuckle, and he says them with such conviction you really believe that he's the best sometimes. (It ain't TRUE, but if he can make you believe it, that's talent.) I know South Park got on him because of his arrogance and I guess it could be toned down a little in real life, but in his songs? FUCK THAT. That's what makes him stand out--I LOVE it.

While we're at it? The hate Kanye got for 808's and Heartbreaks, the album this song is from, is insulting. Dude dropped three albums that were FIRE. (Well, I ain't really like Late Registration, but everybody else seemed to.) Two of them, in my opinion, are classics--the FIRST one's eventually going to be legendary, IMO, and yet he drops one album that ain't really all that and people pretend like he was the One-Hit Wonder who fell off. Sometimes, you humans...

Little more J-Foxx love. Intuition was the only R&B album I copped in 08 'cause though I love to sing...I also love when people sing songs that MAKE me wanna sing and...R&B these days don't make me wanna do that. But Intuition brought the heat, especially with THIS song, which is like some old school 70's Motown/Stax kinda stuff--the shit I grew up listening to riding with all the old people in my family (lol, no offense) when they had the old-school soul radio stations on.

I'm a huge Jamie Foxx fan. Watched his television show back when The WB was mostly just a block on WGN and actually had mostly black comedy shows on (this was a LONG time ago folks--it was The Jamie Foxx Show, The Steve Harvey Show, The Wayans Bros., The Parent Hood, and Seventh Heaven...now that I think about it, that was SO wrong...Seventh Heaven was for the wholesome people while the other shows were for all the heathens, rofl), caught his comedy specials and thought THOSE were hilarious, then when I found out dude could sing I was blown away. (Funny dudes generally can't sing the draws off these females...I mean I can, but I'm special.) Anyway, I copped his last album, which had a few gems but wasn't really all that special...

THIS one though? Classic. 15 tracks, seven I really love, five more I like a lot. And I know, I know, for a while they played the fuck outta this song, but I don't listen to the radio. :D And most of the people I hang with don'…

Hall and Oates again, this time one of the most popular songs they have--I Can't Go For That, which is one of the few songs that managed to penetrate the heavily "blacks only" soul charts back in the day, and STILL has remixes of it by rap artists.

I've always liked the message: No sweetheart, I won't change for you. You already have my body, but I'm not giving up my soul. No, I won't give up who I am. No, I won't watch Death Note. (LMAO.) Sorry, kinda got into a thing thinking about some shit going on in my own life. Anyway--check the song, folks.

I know this isn't quite the video you were expecting, but unfortunately I just didn't feel up to simply linking to the "official" video for some of Hall and Oates's stuff since they won't allow embedding. Oh well. Anyhow, they're still the order of the day, as I wanted to get these other two songs out pretty badly. Rich Girl is a particular favorite of mine--though it always seemed to me they weren't just singing about an actual "rich girl", but also someone that placed no value on the relationships around them.